A different kind of year-end review – a guest post by power couple Mandy & Ben Schobel
Year-end review. For many companies, this means figures, data, facts. Budgets. Forecasts. Performance reports. Bonus schemes. Maybe a ‘nice’ Christmas party with a buffet and PowerPoint presentation. And then? Back to the rat race. But what if the end of the financial year wasn’t just the end of a financial year – but the beginning of a new, more conscious corporate culture?
What if we saw it not just as a balance sheet, but as a mirror of relationships? As a moment to look back not only economically, but also humanely. Not just to evaluate what has been achieved, but how we have treated each other in the process.
Leadership today: between FOMO, AI stress and silent alienation
In times of artificial intelligence, automation and disruption, many managers struggle with the feeling that:
‘We can’t keep up anymore.’
- Fear of missing out on developments
- Pressure to perform constantly
- Concern about not being innovative or fast enough
- And on the other hand: employees who are insecure, suffering silently or have long since resigned internally.
Technology is developing rapidly – but who is taking care of the emotional culture within the company?
Who is ensuring that ‘I work here’ becomes a genuine ‘I belong here’ again?
The true Year-end review: a return to what really matters to people
In our workshops with management teams, we repeatedly see how powerful a change of perspective can be: what if the annual review didn’t start with a list of KPIs, but with a simple question:
What really moved you this year, both professionally and personally?
What if the question were not ‘How much have you achieved?’ but rather:
‘How much did you feel seen, heard and valued?’
What if we didn’t just talk about company benefits, but about something much deeper:
Connection. Trust. Vision.
This perspective is much more than just a nice idea – it has a measurable effect:
According to the Gallup Meta-Analysis 2020, companies with highly engaged, emotionally connected teams achieve on average 21% more productivity, 22% higher profitability and up to 43% less turnover compared to less connected teams.
Source: Gallup Q12 Meta-Analysis Report
From fruit baskets to genuine appreciation – a lasting change of perspective
Many companies mean well: job bikes, home offices, company pension schemes, team lunches. But all of this is not enough if the emotional connection is missing.
Employee retention is not created by benefits, but by genuine relationships.
An example from our own management practice:
We asked our employees to share their five heartfelt wishes with us – not professional ones, but personal ones. This was not a traditional goal-setting meeting, but an invitation to a genuine encounter.
One of Susanne’s wishes was: ‘To walk through the lavender fields in Provence.’ When we were there ourselves a few months later, we brought her back a lavender sachet – as a sign that ‘I see you. I’m thinking of you.’
How much does a gift like this cost? Almost nothing.
What does it achieve? Everything.
Leadership today means knowing life plans, not just job descriptions.
As a leader today, it is no longer enough to formulate goals. You have to be able to support your employees’ future.
This includes asking questions such as:
- Do you know the true needs of your employees?
- Do you know what will fulfil them in five years?
- Do you support – consciously or unconsciously – their life journey?
After all, what is leadership if not a promise of shared growth? In its analysis ‘The Power of Healthy Relationships at Work’, the Harvard Business Review also emphasises that healthy interpersonal relationships in the workplace are a key factor in motivation, mental health and sustainable performance.
Source: Harvard Business Review – The Power of Healthy Relationships at Work
Our invitation: Year-end celebrations with depth instead of cake
We have created an experience format that not only reflects numbers, but also touches people. And it does so on two levels:
- Keynote performance (KeyArt) – directly at your Christmas party or end-of-year event. A powerful, inspiring stage performance that awakens, moves and connects. With storytelling, music, genuine emotions – and a clear message:
‘Humanity is the leadership quality of the future.’
- Intensive impulse workshop – for management or the entire team.
Online or in person. An in-depth, activating workshop that opens up space for reflection, closeness and new perspectives. For genuine commitment. For emotional maturity. For a corporate culture that supports – even in times of change.
Conclusion: Humanity is not a weakness – it is the new strength.
A genuine year-end review creates space for:
- Reflection instead of just reporting
- Closeness instead of just networking
- Connection instead of just contracts
In a world where everything is getting faster and faster, there is a growing longing for something else: Reliability. Authenticity. Humanity.
If you want to make your company not only more efficient in 2026, but also emotionally clearer and more mature, then start now – not with tools, but with a real impulse.
Ready for a year-end event that moves people?
Whether it’s a Christmas party or a strategy retreat, a management day or a team kick-off:
Our KeyArt performance and our workshop start exactly where people meet – and companies grow.
Write to us. Let’s create an experience together that will last. Not as an item on the agenda. But as a turning point.
Contact: alphapaar@speakers-management.com or